Is My Job Too Cushy for Overtime?

The gist of the law is that manual work is eligible for overtime pay, but work that is mostly intellectual is not, since the latter category of jobs usually have higher pay. For example, managers and administrators do not get overtime. Of course, everyone who has worked as a restaurant or retail manager knows that these jobs involve upwards of 10,000 steps per day and plenty of heavy lifting. In some jobs, managers are responsible for filling in for all tasks when the store is short-staffed. Therefore, retail managers can get overtime pay if they spend more than 40% of their work time on non-management duties, such as stocking shelves or working the cash register. Other managers are eligible if they spend at least 20% of their time on non-management tasks, such as if a restaurant manager spends part of her shift waiting tables, washing dishes, cooking, or tending bar.